Psych Vocab Quiz 2

Audition

Sense of hearing

Amplitude

Height of the sound wave

Frequency

The number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a second (Hertz/Hz)

Pitch

The highness or lowness of the sound

Timbre

The particular tone that distinguishes a sound

Sound Localization

Process by which you determine the location of a sound

Place Theory

Theory stating certain sound frequencies cause vibrations in certain parts of the cochlea

Frequency Theory

the frequency of the auditory nerve's impulses corresponds to the frequency of a tone, which allows us to detect its pitch

Conduction Deafness

A loss of hearing that results when the eardrum is punctured or any ossicles lose their ability to vibrate

Nerve (sensorineural) Deafness

Results from damage to the cochlea, hair cells, or auditory neurons caused by disease, aging or exposure to loud noises

Somatosensation

A general term for the four classes of tactile sensation: touch/pressure, warmth, cold, pain

Gate-control Theory

suggests that the spinal cord contains a neurological 'gate' that either blocks pain signals or allows them to continue on to the brain (explains the experience of pain)

Kinesthesis

Enables you to sense the movement of your body

Vestibular Sense

Enables you to sense your body orientation

Chemical Senses

Gustation (taste) & Olfaction (smell)

Selective attention

focusing on a particular object while ignoring distractions

Bottom-up processing

retrieving sensory information from our external environment to build perceptions

Top-down processing

perceiving things based on your prior experiences and knowledge

Visual Capture

our tendency to allow visual images to dominate our perception

Gestalt

the different ways individuals group stimuli together in order to make a whole that makes sense to them

Phi Phenomenon

The illusion of movement created by presenting visual stimuli in rapid succession

Optical or visual illusions

Discrepancies between the appearance of a visual stimulus and its physical realities

Depth Perception

The ability to judge the distance of objects

Monocular Cues

Clues about distance based on the image of one eye

Binocular Cues

Clues about distance requiring two eyes

Perceptual Constancy

The size, shape, and color will remain constant despite angle, distance and lighting

Schemas

Concepts or frameworks that organize and interpret information

Extrasensory Perception (ESP)

Claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input

Parapsychology

The study of paranormal events